Every hole-in-one at the Masters (and how they happened)

Shane Lowry is one of 34 players to have had a Masters hole-in-one.

A Masters hole-in-one just hits differently, doesn’t it? Here’s a brief history of every ace at the Augusta showpiece…

If you’ve ever been fortunate enough to visit Augusta National, you know just how much the roars of the patrons wind their way through the azaleas and to every corner of the property. And there aren’t many better things in golf to witness following a Masters hole-in-one.

In the 88 editions of the Masters to date, there have been 34 holes-in-one across this famous golf course’s four par-3 holes. The first came during the inaugural playing of what was then called the Augusta National Invitation Tournament, in 1934, with the most recent coming in 2022.

There are a few things to note before we get into the full rundown.

No player has ever managed to record more than one Masters hole-in-one. That would just be greedy now, wouldn’t it? Also, no one has ever had an ace and then gone on to win the Masters in the same year – though we’re not quite calling it a curse, like the Par 3 Contest. (Speaking of which, a hole-in-one in the Wednesday hit-and-giggle doesn’t count.)

Also, you might be wondering what – if anything – a player receives for a hole-in-one at the Masters? Well, since 1954, a large crystal bowl has been dished out to anyone carding an ace during the season’s opening major. It may not sound like much compared to the monumental amount of prize money up for grabs if you win the Masters – but it’s still a pretty cool ornament to have on your mantelpiece!

These are also only awarded for holes-in-one during competition days. prizes for a hole-in-one are only awarded for an ace that’s made during competition play – so Jon Rahm just has this video to commemorate his spectacular practice-round effort from 2020…

Right, let’s get into this…

Who has had a Masters hole-in-one?

1. Ross Somerville (1934, hole 16)

It didn’t take too long before Augusta National witnessed its first ace. Ross Somerville’s landmark ace came at the 145-yard 16th hole, which in 1934 was actually the 7th because the two nines at Augusta were played in reverse for the first two Masters Tournaments. Somerville used a mashie niblick, the equivalent to a modern-day 7-iron.

2. Willie Goggin (1935, hole 16)

As the old cliche goes – no one ever remembers who came second. Like Somerville the year before, Willie Goggin’s hole-in-one was on the 7th hole – now the 16th – and he used a spade mashie, which is the equivalent to a modern-day 6-iron.

3. Ray Billows (1940, hole 16)

Augusta National had to wait five years before seeing the third Masters ace courtesy of Ray Billows. By this time, the 16th hole must have been getting a reputation as the ‘hole-in-hole hole’. Billows used an 8-iron on the famous par-3.

4. Claude Harmon (1947, hole 12)

The first hole-in-one that was not only away from the 16th but on the famous Golden Bell was recorded by Claude Harmon. The famous par-3 in Amen Corner may have looked a bit different back then, but it was still as treacherous. Harmon used a 7-iron on the 155-yard hole.

5. John Dawson (1949, hole 16)

Back to the 16th hole for the fifth hole-in-one in Master’s history and this time it was amateur John Dawson with the honor. Dawson’s ace came in 1949 which, incidentally, was the first year Augusta National presented a Green Jacket to its winner. Dawson used a 4-iron to land his ace on 16, which that year played 190 yards.

6. Leland Gibson (1954, hole 6)

You know what they say. You wait years for a hole-in-one at Augusta’s 6th hole and then two come along at once. The first time there were multiple aces at the same Masters was 1954. Leland Gibson was up first, using a 4-iron from 190 yards.

7. Billy Joe Patton (1954, hole 6)

Billy Joe Patton was arguably the closest an amateur has ever come to winning the Masters. Having led through 18 and 36 holes, Patton eventually finishing in 3rd – behind Sam Snead and Ben Hogan, no less. Still, he’ll always have that ace at the 6th, for which he used a 5-iron.

8. William Hyndman (1959, hole 12)

We’re back to the 12th hole for the eighth Masters hole-in-one and the fifth and final recorded by an amateur to date. William Hyndman’s effort came courtesy of a 6-iron from 155 yards on Golden Bell.

9. Clive Clark (1968, hole 16)

Clive Clark only ever played in one Masters – and he had the first ever Masters hole-in-one captured by the TV cameras before promptly missing the cut. The Englishman also holds the record for the strongest-lofted club used for an Augusta ace. Clark scratched a ‘1’ onto his scorecard after holing out from 190 yards with a 2-iron.

10. Charles Coody (1972, hole 6)

Charles Coody also holds a little bit of Augusta history as the first player to win the Green Jacket and have a Masters hole-in-one. Coody was the defending champion in 1972 when he aced the 6th hole with a 5-iron from 190 yards.

11. Curtis Strange (1988, hole 12)

Patrons had to wait 16 years for the 11th Masters hole-in-one. Curtis Strange used a 7-iron to become the third – and most recent – player to ace Golden Bell. He then inexplicably grabbed his ball from the cup and launched it into Rae’s Creek.

12. Jeff Sluman (1992, hole 4)

The first hole-in-one at the 4th hole came 58 years after the Masters was founded. The honor went to Jeff Sluman, who used a 4-iron for the 213-yard hole, though unfortunately it wasn’t caught on camera. Surely we’re due another at Augusta’s first par-3?

13. Corey Pavin (1992, hole 16)

Unlucky for some, but not for Corey Pavin, who recorded the 13th hole-in-one in Masters history just a day after Sluman’s slice of history. Pavin slam-dunked his ball from 140 yards with an 8-iron.

14. Raymond Floyd (1996, hole 16)

Twenty years on from his Masters victory, Raymond Floyd was playing in his 32nd Masters when he found the bottom of the cup on the 16th hole during Sunday’s final round. Floyd used a 5-iron to find the top portion of the green at the 182-yard par-3, before watching it feed back down and into the hole.

15. Chris DiMarco (2004, hole 6)

The first hole-in-one after the turn of the century came at the 2004 Masters and it was achieved by Chris DiMarco at the 6th hole. After starting his tournament with five consecutive pars, DiMarco fired one straight at the pin on the 198-yard par-3 with a 5-iron and he watched it drop to the bottom of the cup.

16. Padraig Harrington (2004, hole 16)

We didn’t have to wait long for another, as Padraig Harrington stepped onto the 16th tee with a 6-iron in his hand and fired his ball into the bank before watching it trundle back down to the hole and into the cup. If you were sitting anywhere near 16 that day, you were in for a treat, because…

17. Kirk Triplett (2004, hole 16)

…Kirk Triplett was playing in the very next group to Padraig Harrington when he holed his 6-iron!

18. Trevor Immelman (2005, hole 16)

Another player who has a Masters hole-in-one and title is Trevor Immelman. The South African used a 7-iron to hole out from 177 yards. Three years later he came back to claim the Green Jacket. Incidentally, if you’d been seated at 16 all of that day, you’d have witnessed Immelman’s ace and Tiger Woods’ infamous chip.

19. Ian Poulter (2008, hole 16)

Special delivery from the Postman! In the opening round of the 2008 Masters, Ian Poulter – in his lime green IJP Design trousers, pin-striped top, and matching visor – aced the 16th with an 8-iron.

20 (Nathan Green (2010, hole 16)

Despite being 15-over-par with three to play, Australian Nathan Green wasn’t going down without a fight, holing out with a 6-iron from 176 yards.

21. Ryan Moore (2010, hole 16)

Another hole-in-one was witnessed later that day on hole 16, this time by a fresh-faced Ryan Moore. The American stepped up to the tee, wearing his cardigan and green tie, with a 7-iron in hand that he landed short of the pin and let it roll back and down the hill to the hole.

22. Adam Scott (2012, hole 16)

A year before his Masters glory, Adam Scott took aim with a 7-iron from 202 yards, and while the first bounce was in the rough, it still managed to find its way into the cup. Strewth!

23. Bo Van Pelt (2012, hole 16)

That very same day, Bo Van Pelt stepped onto the 16th tee box with a 6-iron in hand and set his ball off on a much safer line, letting it trickle down the hill and having it nestle at the bottom of the cup from 202 yards.

24. Jamie Donaldson (2013, hole 6)

A year before his Ryder Cup heroics, Jamie Donaldson aced the par-3 6th with a 7-iron from 177 yards – some 21 yards shorter than when DiMarco did the same thing nine year before.

25. Shane Lowry (2016, hole 16)

Shane Lowry has had holes-in-one on the 16th at Augusta, the 7th at Pebble, and the 17th at TPC Sawgrass. What a collection that is for the Irishman! The first of those came here, where Lowry used an 8-iron from 181 yards.

26. Davis Love III (2016, hole 16)

The crowd had barely settled down from Lowry’s ace when Davis Love III stepped on the tee armed with a 7-iron and found the bottom of the cup. Surely there wouldn’t be another hole-in-one on the 16th hole at the 2016 Masters…

27. Louis Oosthuizen (2016, hole 16)

Of course not! While there had been three holes-in-one at a single Masters before – in 2004 – this was the first time we witness three on the same hole. Louis Oosthuizen’s was also arguably the most ludicrous Masters hole-in-one ever, too, after his 7-iron shot fed down to the hole and ricocheted off a playing partner’s ball before finding the cup.

28. Matt Kuchar (2017, hole 16)

A year later Matt Kuchar pulled off almost precisely the same shot as Oosthuizen – though the only help the American’s ball needed to find the hole was a 7-iron and our good friend gravity.

29. Charley Hoffman (2018, hole 16)

Charley Hoffman’s 6-iron was probably further left than he would have liked, but thanks to a favorable bounce, his ball landed below the hole and kicked up towards the pin and into the hole.

30. Bryson DeChambeau (2019, hole 16)

This was Bryson DeChambeau’s first ever hole-in-one and what a place to do it! The Scientist used a 7-iron to find the cup at the 16th – which was his seventh hole of the day thanks to a two-tee start that day. Maybe this is why he called Augusta “a par-67″…

31. Justin Thomas (2019, hole 16)

Later that day in 2019, we almost witness two aces from the same group. Just look where Jon Rahm’s ball is when Justin Thomas’s 8-iron effort snuck round the back and in the side door.

32. Tommy Fleetwood (2021, hole 16)

Tommy Fleetwood preferred a more direct approach when he aced the 16th. The Englishman took dead aim at the pin with his 9-iron and one hop, two hops, drop. Easy really.

33. Corey Conners (2021, hole 6)

After eight consecutive hole-in-ones on hole 16 at the Masters it was time back to the 6th. Corey Conners judged his 8-iron into the 182-yard par-3 perfectly to become the first Canadian to have an ace at the Masters since Ross Somerville in 1934.

34. Stewart Cink (2022, hole 16)

You might remember Stewart Cink as the man who robbed Tom Watson of the chance to win The Open at the age of 59, but for the purposes of this piece he is the player with the most recent Masters hole-in-one. Cink’s 8-iron, like so many at 16, found the right portion of the green before it rolled down and into the cup.

Masters Hole-in-One Honors Board